Passing the buck for delays to key projects has become too easy for members of the Northern Ireland Executive, a business leader has warned.

Tangled responsibilities and political indecision were to blame for slow progress on the building of new schools and hospitals and a scrapped multi-sports stadium plan at the Maze, Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Northern Ireland director Nigel Smyth added.

He gave evidence at Stormont yesterday on a review of official investment.

“The present system and structures leads to a ‘blurring' of responsibilities between ministers, civil servants in departments, and the Strategic Investment Board (SIB),” his submission said. It has been too easy to pass the buck regarding responsibility for delays.”

According to Belfast SDLP councillor Tim Attwood, staff, women's groups and mothers began to lobby for a new regional maternity hospital in Belfast over a decade ago.

Investment in schools has also been delayed.

This month the construction industry said concerns about a lack of public spending in Northern Ireland had been exacerbated after the Court of Appeal delayed a hearing into an £800 million construction plan for another two months.

The Department of Finance and Personnel is appealing a High Court ruling from last year that its procurement processes for the major framework were flawed.

It has been suggested that about 28,000 jobs have been lost in Northern Ireland's construction sector during the recession.